Analyst upgrades:

• Deutsche Bank upgraded ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) to Buy from Hold on expectations that oil supply will begin to tighten and demand rise. The firm has a $55 price target on the stock.
• Citigroup upgraded Pinnacle West (NYSE: PNW) to Buy from Hold and added the stock to its Top Picks Live list. The firm expects the company's settlement in Arizona to be approved and raised its target on shares to $35 from $32.
• RBC Capital upgraded NetApp (NASDAQ: NTAP) to Outperform from Sector Perform as it believes that the company is performing better than expected during its October quarter. The firm expects the company to continue to execute well during subsequent quarters and it raised its target to $33.
• Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Goldman.
• PetSmart (NASDAQ: PETM) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Janney Montgomery.
• General Dynamics (NYSE: GD) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley.

Analyst upgrades:

• Morgan Keegan upgraded Motorola (NYSE: MOT) to Outperform from Market Perform due to the increased visibility of Android-based launches, as well as the stock's valuation.
• OfficeMax (NYSE: OMX) was upgraded to Buy from Hold by Citigroup, which cited the company's stabilizing sales trend, accelerating share gains, and valuation.
• Kaufman Bros. upgraded iRobot (NASDAQ: IRBT) to Buy from Hold on valuation.
• Cancaccord upgraded Rio Tinto (NYSE: RTP) to Buy from Hold citing the turnaround in the aluminum business and its exposure to copper.
• Wells Fargo upgraded Smith & Nephew (NYSE: SNN) to Market Perform from Underperform.
• BT Group (NYSE: BT) was upgraded to Neutral from Reduce by Nomura.
• Societe Generale raised L'Oreal (OTC: LRLCY) to Buy from Sell.
• Franklin Resources (NYSE: BEN) was upgraded to Buy from Hold by Sandler O'Neill.

Analyst upgrades:

• B. Riley upgraded Finish Line (NASDAQ: FINL) to Buy from Neutral to reflect the potential for improving trends in second half of 2009. The firm raised its target on shares to $10.50 from $9.
• Merriman upgraded OptionXpress (NASDAQ: OXPS) to Neutral from Sell following the company's better than expected Q2 results. The firm notes higher commissions per trade more than offset weak DARTs and the decline in customer additions in the quarter.
• RBC Capital upgraded Gardner Denver (NYSE: GDI) to Outperform from Sector Perform and raised its target to $34 from $28 citing the additional scale of restructuring, better tone to end-markets, and few downside catalysts. Baird upgraded Gardner Denver to Outperform from Neutral and raised its target to $35 from $32 based on a bottom in fundamentals and compelling valuation.
• BE Aerospace (NASDAQ: BEAV) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at FBR Capital.
• Shire (NASDAQ: SHPGY) was upgraded to Perform from Underperform at Oppenheimer.
• UnitedHealth (NYSE: UNH) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse.

To get a valuation juiced up, all it takes is two bidders. And, that's what Data Domain (NASDAQ: DDUP) got. The data deduplication company has been the target of two rival bidders: NetApp (NASDAQ: NTAP) and EMC (NYSE: EMC).

Well, today the wrangling stopped -- with EMC as the victor. The company has agreed to shell out $2.4 billion for Data Domain.

TheStreet.com's Jim Cramer says these stocks have become too expensive without takeovers and a more robust economy.

One after another after another, these software charts are amazing. And, I might add, a bit scary. How did McAfee (NYSE: MFE) (Cramer's Take) make that kind of move just on security software? Didn't Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) (Cramer's Take) just say -- admittedly for the 4 millionth time -- that it was going to give away free anti-virus software? Or Citrix (NASDAQ: CTXS) (Cramer's Take)? What's that all about? How could it return to those levels?

There were rumors of a Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) (Cramer's Take) takeover a week or two ago, and, amazingly, when it didn't come true, the stock hung in.

Stocks felt choppy all day, although the late day move and afternoon stability allowed stocks to have another solid day. Housing starts added some strength, and the buyers are still deciding they need to be in rather than out of the market.

Here are today's unofficial closing bell levels:

Dow 8,746.51 +25.07 (0.29%)
S&P 500 945.36 +2.49 (0.26%)
Nasdaq 1,836.89 +8.21 (0.45%)

Top Analyst Upgrades
Top Analyst Downgrades

A race has broken out for Data Domain Inc (NASDAQ: DDUP). NetApp Inc. (NASDAQ: NTAP) offered $1.5 billion for the company two weeks ago, and EMC Corp. (NYSE: EMC) decided it had to get in on the action, upping the ante to $1.8 billion yesterday. Data Domain shares gained 16% on the news in late trading yesterday, resulting in EMC's bid carrying a 17% premium.

EMC sees Data Domain as its ticket into the market for software-based storage management, as the target company's products help reduce the amount of disk space needed to store data. With large, high-profile clients like AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) and the U.S. Defense Department, Data Domain was able to double its top line to $274 million in 2008. It pulled in net income of $21.6 million last year, up from a loss of $3.7 million in 2007.

Here are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• Aeropostale Inc. (NYSE: ARO) beat profit expectations as revenue and same-store sales both increased.
• Aruba Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: ARUN) received an analyst's upgrade following its Q3 report.
• Buckle Inc. (NYSE: BKE) reported better-than-expected Q1 expectations as revenue surged.
• Campbell Soup Co. (NYSE: CPB) higher Q2 earnings beat expectations and sent shares upward.
• Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE) reported better-than-expected Q3 earnings, sending shares higher.

For NetApp (NASDAQ: NTAP), yesterday was fairly eventful. Not only did the company announce its Q4 earnings but also a $1.5 billion deal to purchase rival storage maker, Data Domain (NASDAQ: DDUP). The transaction comes to $25 per share.

No doubt, NetApp needs to find growth, as CFOs tighten information technology (IT) budgets. Keep in mind that Q4 revenues fell 6.2% to $879.6 million.

Analyst upgrades:

• Jefferies upgraded Quicksilver (NYSE: KWK) to Buy from Hold as it believes the company has many options to resolve its liquidity crisis. The firm expects shares to move towards its $10 NAV estimate and raised its target price to $10 from $7.
• Deutsche Bank upgraded Omnicom Group (NYSE: OMC) to Hold from Sell following the Q1 results as the company's margins are holding up better than previously thought. The firm raised its target price on shares to $31 from $21.
  
• Deutsche Bank also upgraded Universal Health (NYSE: UHS) following the company's better than expected Q1 results. Shares were lifted to Buy from Hold and the firm raised its target on the stock to $60 from $45.
• Barclays (NYSE: BCS) was raised to Buy from Reduce at Nomura.
  
• Orient-Express (NYSE: OEH) was lifted to Neutral from Underweight at JP Morgan.
  
• CVS Caremark (NYSE: CVS) was upgraded at Goldman to Conviction Buy from Buy.

This was one of those "sell-the-news" trading days that many of the bears were expecting over the last two weeks. In fact, some bears might finally feel vindicated after weeks of being slapped silly. The European markets started lower and the U.S. followed suit. Credit concerns for banks getting worse ahead and what Uncle Sam will do with his stakes in the banks was just a part of it.

Here are today's unofficial closing bell levels:

Dow 7,841.73 -289.60 (-3.56%)
S&P 500 832.39 -37.21 (-4.28%)
Nasdaq 1,608.21 -64.86 (-3.88%)

Top 10 Analyst Calls

Here are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• Applied Materials Inc. (NASDAQ: AMAT) posted a Q1 loss and announced a workforce reduction.
• ArcelorMittal (NYSE: MT) swung to it's first ever quarterly loss due to lower demand and a big write-down.
• Buffalo Wild Wings Inc. (NASDAQ: BWLD) shares surged after it posted strong Q4 results.
• Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (NYSE: CMG) posted better-than-expected Q4 earnings as revenue surged.
• Genzyme Corp. (NASDAQ: GENZ) topped Q4 earnings estimates, sending shares higher.
• Global Traffic Network Inc. (NASDAQ: GNET) weaker-than-expected Q2 results led to a downgrade.
• Level 3 Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: LVLT) shares fell despite its upside surprise for Q4.
• Lions Gate Entertainment (NYSE: LGF) posted a bigger-than-expected Q3 loss despite revenue growth.

NetApp (NASDAQ: NTAP - option chain) shares are headed higher today after the company announced it plans to cut 6 percent of its global work force in order to reduce costs. NTAP reported a loss of 23 cents per share, but excluding items made 28 cents, which was in line with estimates. If you think that the stock won't fall by too much in the coming months, then now could be a good time to look at a bullish hedged trade on NTAP.

NTAP opened this morning at $14.10. So far today the stock has hit a low of $14.07 and a high of $16.41. As of 11:55, NTAP is trading at $16.41, up $1.16 (7.6%). The chart for NTAP looks bearish and S&P gives NTAP a negative 2 STARS (out of 5) sell ranking.

Analyst upgrades:

• UBS upgraded Kansas City Southern (NYSE:KSU) to Buy from Neutral and lowered its target to $26 from $35 citing valuation.
  
• Gabelli upgraded Media General (NYSE:MEG) to Hold from Sell because the firm thinks that Harbinger Capital has sold most of its shares in the company. As a result, the firm thinks the stock will be under less selling pressure.
  
• Eagle Bulk Shipping (NASDAQ:EGLE) was upgraded to Neutral from Underperform at Merrill Lynch.
• Centene (NYSE:CNC) was raised to Buy from Neutral at Goldman.
  
• Ralcorp (NYSE:RAH) was upgraded at Credit Suisse to Outperform from Neutral.
  
• Interpublic Group (NYSE:IPG) was upgraded to Equal Weight from Underweight at Morgan Stanley.

Analyst downgrades:

• Keefe Bruyette downgraded Healthcare Realty(NYSE:HR) to Market Perform from Outperform on concerns the company's development activity could be dilutive to near-term earnings.
  
• Citigroup downgraded Satyam (NYSE:SAY) to Sell from Buy as they believe the company's acquisition plans, and subsequent cancellation of the deals, will lessen investor confidence in the name.
  
• Oppenheimer downgraded Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) to Perform from Outperform citing Steve Jobs cancellation of his annual key note speech at Macworld on January 6. The analyst said the unexpected announcement underscores Apple's long-term dependence on Job's health and its lack of succession plan.
• Baird downgraded Carlisle NYSE:CSL)to Neutral from Outperform.
  
• Gibraltar Industries (NASDAQ:ROCK) was downgraded at Piper Jaffray to Sell from Buy.
  
• NetApp (NASDAQ:NTAP) was cut to Accumulate from Buy at ThinkPanmure.

Analyst initiations:

• Citigroup believes the acquisition of Barr enhances Teva's (NASDAQ:TEVA) growth. The firm started shares with a Buy rating and $52 target.
  
• Suntrust initiated American Express (NYSE:AXP) with a Reduce citing slowing growth and greater-than-industry deterioration in credit quality.
  
• Roth Capital initiated The Buckle (NYSE:BKE) with a Hold rating and $17 target citing the deteriorating macro environment.
• Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) and Allegheny Tech (NYSE:ATI) were assumed with Neutral ratings and targets of $52 and $26, respectively, at UBS.
  
• Digital Realty (NYSE:DLR) was initiated at Piper Jaffray with a Buy rating.
  
• Mylan (NYSE:MYL) was started with an Overweight rating and $15 target at JP Morgan.

Analyst upgrades:

• Keefe Bruyette upgraded shares of AllianceBernstein (NYSE: AB) to Outperform from Market Perform as they find AB's risk/reward attractive given its attractive long-term business model. Wachovia upgraded Watson Pharma (NYSE: WPI) and Teva Pharma (NASDAQ: TEVA) to Outperform from Market Perform citing valuations and positive drivers for generics that include patent expirations and market share expansion.
• UBS raised Lloyds TSB Group (NYSE: LYG) to Neutral from Sell on expected pricing power following the HBOS (OTC: HBOOY) acquisition.
• Otter Tail (NASDAQ: OTTR) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Baird.
• GFI Group (NASDAQ: GFIG) was upgraded at Citigroup to Hold from Sell.
• Merrill upgraded Logitech (NASDAQ: LOGI) to Neutral from Underperform.

Analyst downgrades:

• JP Morgan downgraded shares of Lloyds TSB Group to Underweight from Neutral on capital concerns and believes the HBOS acquisition is not in the best interest of shareholders.
• Stephens downgraded Universal Truckload (NASDAQ: UACL) to Equal Weight from Overweight on valuation and concerns about a slowdown in the flatbed sector. The firm's target remains $28.